After FDA Changes Course, Consumers Trying to Figure Out If Butter or Margarine is Better

The recently released 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans are food fat friendly, endorsing even the saturated fats previous versions limited.

Many experts were flummoxed by the sudden change when Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. issued new FDA guidelines which literally turned the food pyramid upside down. “Protein and healthy fats are essential and were wrongly discouraged in prior dietary guidelines,” Kennedy said. “We are ending the war on saturated fats.”

For ordinary folk the most relevant issue is what the new standards mean at mealtime. For example, is butter or margarine the better choice to spread on your bread at breakfast? While some are likely to prefer one or the other, when it comes to nutrition, Prevention magazine asked two diet experts to answer the real question: Is one a more nutritious choice for you?

The answer starts with how each is made says Emer Delaney, founder of My Private Dietitian. As every farmer knows, butter begins when milk is churned to separate the fat from the milk so it rises to the top to be skimmed off and allowed to harden. Margarine is simply a blend of veggie oils originally developed as a cheaper alternative to its fatty cousin.

That said, butter is primarily a source of fats, about 40 percent monounsaturated and polyunsaturated healthy ones plus a whopping 60 percent of the saturated fats linked to cardiovascular problems. It’s also high in calories which contribute to weight gain.

But the fascinating fact Nutrition Wise dietician Vicki Koenig told Prevention is that what the cow ate makes a difference in what end up on a person’s plate because butter made from grass-fed cows is higher in healthy fats than butter made from cows who ate grain.

As for margarine, it, too, is primarily a sore of fat, but USDA confirms that here the split between good and bad fats is more even than it is in butte with each of the three fats making up roughly a third of the total. As Emer Delaney, founder of My Private Dietitian, notes the types of plant oils used to make the margarine matter. “If it’s made from unsaturated oils such as rapeseed oil, this can support heart health by helping to reduce the LDL ‘bad’ cholesterol.” In short, as always it pays to read the label because “if the margarine is made from palm oil, which is more saturated, this doesn’t add much of a benefit.” Ditto for margarine solid in a stick, also higher in sat fat.” And where the it’s made also counts: Margarines made in other countries may contain added sat fats.

The calories counts are trickier because both spreads are “energy dense” (translation: high in calories) 102 per tablespoon for butter and 75 for margarine. As a result, the trick here is the same for other high calorie foods: Portion control because as Delaney explains, using either one liberally every day at meal times means “calories are going to add up quickly, and that’s not going to be beneficial for weight loss.”

Finally, although a new study in a recent issue of the American Medical Association journal comparing the two spreads reported that higher plant-based oil intake was associated with lower mortality, if otherwise healthy consumers want to use a bit of butter or margarine here and there, a little bit of butter can give a nice flavor without overdoing the saturated fat content.

Nutrition Facts margarine (Serving Size 1 tablespoon):

Amount Per Serving: Calories 75; Total Fat 8.46g 11%; Saturated Fat 1.436g 7%; Polyunsaturated Fat 3.53g; Monounsaturated Fat 2.905g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium112mg 5%; Total Carbohydrate dietary fiber sugars 0; Protein 0.09g; Vitamin D 1 ug/60 IU; Calcium 3 mg; Iron 0; Potassium 4mg; Vitamin A 117mcg 13%; Vitamin C 0mg

Nutrition Facts for Butter (Per Tablespoon, 14 grams):

Calories: 102; Total Fat: 12 grams; Saturated Fat: 7 grams; Monounsaturated Fat: 3 grams; Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5 grams; Cholesterol: 31 milligrams; Sodium: 2 milligrams (unsalted) to 90 milligrams (salted); Vitamin A: 11% of the Daily Value (DV) 350 IU; Vitamin E: 2% of the DV 0.3mg; Vitamin K: 1% of the DV 1 mg; Calcium: 3 milligrams; Protein: 0.12 grams; Carbohydrates: 0 grams